The Institute of African Studies was established on March 15, 1977, to promote African studies through in-depth regional research and to contribute to the development of strategies for advancing into Africa and enhancing relations with the region. The Institute's primary purpose and direction are to conduct academic research on African languages, literature, history, politics, economy, society, and culture, as well as to share and share the diverse academic and practical achievements accumulated through this research with society. Accordingly, the Institute discovers and conducts academic research on diverse research topics within the African continent, regions, and countries. Furthermore, it provides and shares socially valuable information through seminars, lectures, and cultural festivals (film festivals, photo exhibitions).
The Institute regularly hosts academic conferences on Africa and collaborates with various NGOs and civil society organizations to host various Africa-related events, continuously striving to recreate academic value in society.

Furthermore, the Institute utilizes the knowledge and methodologies of African studies developed by leading Western African studies institutions, while re-examining our understanding and approaches to Africa from a Korean perspective. This approach is dedicated to establishing a Korean paradigm for African studies. To this end, the Institute was selected as a Humanities Korea (HK) Overseas Promising Research Institute in November 2007, supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea. In September 2010, it was designated as a Humanities Korea (HK) Overseas Research Institute, enabling it to conduct ongoing African studies for the next ten years.

Furthermore, to strengthen its research foundation, it promotes continuous exchanges with domestic and international research institutions, holds regular domestic and international academic conferences, and plans and promotes various publishing activities, such as academic research series, ethnographic series, and translated works, as well as operating a webzine (featuring contributed articles, expert commentaries, and cartoons), thereby expanding understanding of Africa.

Going forward, our institute plans to pursue broad and in-depth cooperation and exchange with domestic and international researchers and research institutions through the deepening and expansion of African research. We will also do our best to become an institute that meets the standards demanded by domestic and international academia and society by providing useful information and knowledge about Africa to the government, public institutions, businesses, and the general public.

Director of the Institute of African Studies Hankuk University of Foreign StudiesKim Kwang-soo